Sig Christenson is a veteran military reporter who has made nine trips to the war zone. He writes regularly for Hearst about service members, veterans and heroes, among other topics. He is also the co-founder and former president of Military Reporters and Editors, founded in 2002.

Abdo

08/11/2012

WACO — Pfc. Naser Jason Abdo, a Muslim conscientious objector who plotted to wage holy war on fellow soldiers and their families, was given life in prison Friday.

Manacled, his face covered by a mesh cloth to prevent incidents like one in which he spat blood on two U.S. marshals this year, Abdo gave a long and rambling statement outlining his journey from an infantryman in the fabled 101st Airborne Division to jihadist.

There were no apologies, and as he wrapped up the statement Abdo said: “I don't ask the court for mercy because Allah is the one that gives mercy.”

A jury took 55 minutes in May to find Abdo guilty of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, attempted murder of U.S. officers or employees and four other charges.

U.S. Judge District Judge Walter S. Smith took about two minutes to hand down sentences that gave him little discretion. The two life terms were mandatory.

Four other counts carried a total of 60 years in prison and will be stacked on top of the two life terms, meaning Abdo is unlikely to ever make parole.

An infantryman pegged for deployment to Afghanistan, Abdo declared himself a conscientious objector, saying he couldn't wage war on Muslim soil.

His journey from Fort Campbell, Ky., to a Killeen budget motel began after the Army charged him with child pornography possession.

Abdo claimed to be angry over U.S.-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and expressed support for Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, a Muslim military psychiatrist accused of gunning down 45 people at Fort Hood. Thirteen died in that melee. Hasan goes on trial Aug. 20.

Abdo hatched at least two plots, one to kidnap and murder a soldier in Kentucky, and another to bomb and strafe a Chinese restaurant popular with the troops in Killeen. He bumbled his way through both of them, but appeared determined, prompting authorities to say he was close to pulling off the attack.

“He stated he wanted to do it for the sake of the men and women of Afghanistan, that they had been wronged,” Owens said, adding that Abdo also hoped to support alleged Fort Hood mass shooter Nidal Malik Hasan, a fellow Muslim soldier he felt was mistreated in the Army over his faith.

As testimony opened here, a picture of Abdo's journey from Fort Campbell to a budget hotel within walking distance of Fort Hood came into focus. The trail was littered with cash purchases, time-stamped receipts and videos that prosecutors used to build their case.

Everywhere he went, from a Wal-Mart in Plano to Guns Galore in Killeen, where Abdo bought a type of smokeless powder that could be used to set off a homemade bomb, he aroused suspicion.

In Kentucky, a gun store clerk refused to sell him a .40-caliber handgun he'd selected for its “knock-down” power and called an MP commander. Workers at Guns Galore were so alarmed they phoned police, a move that ended in Abdo's arrest.

05/22/2012

WACO — An AWOL infantryman accused of plotting an attack near Fort Hood sat with a white surgical mask over his face Monday as his trial began in federal court.

A jury of eight women and four men were selected to hear the charges that Pfc. Naser J. Abdo, 22, plotted to bomb a restaurant in Killeen and then gun down the patrons as they fled.

After earning a reputation for courtroom theatrics and reportedly spitting blood at federal agents, a calm Abdo appeared to be involved in efforts to select the jury.

As he and his attorney Zachary Boyd went over a list of jurors late in the day, courtroom security agents stood nearby wearing protective goggles.

Boyd, of Copperas Cove, earlier had raised the issue with the prospective jurors.

“Does anybody here have a problem with the fact that my client is wearing a mask in court today?” he asked?

Once an infantryman at Fort Campbell, Ky., and arrested by the Army for child pornography possession, Abdo is charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempted murder, among other allegations, and faces life in prison.

Agents testified that they found weapons, enough gunpowder to make at least one bomb and step-by-step directions from an al-Qaida magazine on how to do it when they arrested Abdo outside a hotel July 27.

Abdo, who has thick, tousled hair and a thin beard, watched Monday as almost 70 people were screened. He appeared to be manacled. Unlike his first court appearance, when he cried out in apparent support of an Army doctor accused of killing 13 people in a Fort Hood shooting attack, he was well-behaved Monday.

Two prospective jurors said they had heard or seen news reports that Abdo claimed he was HIV positive and spat blood at federal agents. The U.S. attorney's office would not confirm the reports.

During his questioning of the jury pool, his attorney raised concerns over religious prejudice toward Abdo. “Would any of you hold it against my client for being a Muslim?” Boyd asked.

05/21/2012

An AWOL soldier accused of plotting a terrorist attack off Fort Hood has one advantage as his trial begins today in a federal court: Prosecutors have to prove he was poised to commit mass murder.

Pfc. Naser J. Abdo was arrested July 27 at a discount hotel within walking distance of Fort Hood with weapons, enough gunpowder to make at least one bomb and step-by-step directions from an al-Qaida mgazine on how to do that.

But three veteran attorneys called the allegations an “inchoate offense,” or one that wasn't carried out. They say it could be tougher to prove, but prosecutors have at least one trump card: a statement they say Abdo gave outlining plans to kill soldiers, their families and their friends in a Killeen restaurant.

“The government is going to have to prove its case, and the defense is going to be looking very closely at making the government show that he knowingly and intentionally engaged in this violence,” said Jeffrey Addicott, who heads St. Mary's University's Center for Terrorism Law. “That's a little hard for the government because the act didn't take place.”

A Muslim infantryman who claimed conscientious objector status, Abdo, 22, is charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempted murder, among a host of allegations, and faces a life sentence in prison. The Army said Abdo fled his post after being charged with possession of child pornography.

Federal agents say Abdo admitted that he was planning to blow up a restaurant and shoot the victims as they escaped. Military attorney Frank Spinner and South Texas College of Law Professor Geoffrey Corn said prosecutors will have to show Abdo wasn't just toying with the idea of an attack.

“Preparing for a crime is not enough to be guilty of an attempt. The jury has to be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant had gone beyond preparation and had initiated perpetration,” said Corn, an expert on criminal, military and national security cases.

“It comes down to, where are the lines?” said Spinner, known for representing high-profile defendants. “Has he crossed that line from just an idea, and ideas are not crimes, to actually moving toward the completion of the crime?”